Device for use in laying conductors.



I. BOWDLE. DEVICE FOR USE IN LAYING GONDUCTORS. APPLIUATION FILED JAN. 21, 1911.

[Wm Ja /47 Witn sses I Inventor r i t I Attorneys Patented Mar. '5, 1912.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ISAIAH BOWDLE, 0F PASADENA, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR TO FRANK. CRAWFORD, OF

PASADENA, CALIFORNIA.

DEVICE FOR USE IN LAYING CONDUCTORS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 5, 1912.

Application filed January 21, 1911. Serial No. 603,916.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ISAIAH BowDLn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Pasadena, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented a new and useful Device for Use in Laying Conductors, of which the following is a specification.

It is the object of the present invention to provide an improved device for use in laying cables and conductor wires in condu ts. This is usually accomplished by feeding through the conduit a lead wire or strip to which the conductor wire or cable is attached, the lead wire or strip being then withdrawn through the conduit whereby to properly position the conductor in the conduit. Usually, the wire or strip is fed from a reel and is guided into the conduit, manually. However, it has been found that this method is undesirable for the reason that extreme care must be used in properly guiding the wire or strip as it is unwound from the reel and fed into the conduit, so that it will not be liable to buckle or become otherwise distorted.

The present invention contemplates the provision of a device for feeding such lead wires or strips into conduits, directly from the reel without manually guiding them.

To this end, the device embodying the present invention includes means for feeding the lead Wire or strip from the reel in a line tangential to the reel. Th1s is preferably accomplished by winding upon the reel, with the lead wire orstrip, a feed element also in the nature of a wire or strip (preferably the latter). The feed strip is taken up by a second reel positioned near the first mentioned reel, and, as it is unwound from the first mentioned reel onto the second mentioned reel, directs or feeds the lead strip from the first mentioned reel and into the conduit, in a line tangential to the first mentioned reel.

In the accompanying drawings-Figure 1 is a perspective View of the device embodying the present invention, parts being broken away. Fig. 2 is a view in side elevation of a portion of the device. Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Preferably the mechanism of the device is held Within a suitable casing and in the drawings this casing is illustrated as mounted upon legs or standards 5 and includes side walls 6 and a front wall 7. A shaft 8 is journaled for rotation in the casing and upon this shaft is fixed a reel 9. The shaft projects at one end through and beyond one side wall 6 of the casing and removably fitted upon its said end is a crank handle 10 by means of which the shaft and the reel may be. rotated. For a purpose to be presently explained, the reel is formed in its periphery with a notch indicated by the numeral 11 and resulting in an abrupt shoulder 12. This shoulder is presented in the direction of rotation of the reel to unwind the lead and feed elements of the device. The lead element of the device is preferably in the nature of a metallic plate or strip 13 and the feed element is of like form and is indicated by the numeral 14. Both of these elements are permanently secured as at 15 to the reel 9 adjacentthe notch 12 in the periphery thereof and are wound upon the said reels in the manner illustrated clearly in Fig. 2 of the drawings. A shaft 16 is also mounted to rotate in the casing and upon this shaft is fixed a reel 17, the shaft having one end projecting beyond one side wall of the casing as in the instance of the shaft 8, whereby the operating crank handle 10 may be applied to either shaft for the purpose of rotating either reel. It is intended that the rotation of both reels shall be retarded to a desired degree and to accomplish this, spring washers 18 are provided one upon each of the reel shafts. The feed element 14: is secured to the reel 17 and is adapted to be wound thereon and the lead element 13 is led from the casing through a suitable guide which will now be described.

The uide mentioned above consists of a head which is indicated by the numeral 19 and is slotted as at 20, and spaced tongues 21 which are secured to the head and project rearwardly therefrom. The guide is inserted through a slot 22 formed in the front wall 7 of the casing and a pivot pin 23 is secured through the lower one of the tongues 21 and is fitted at its ends in openings in the side walls of the casing. In this manner, the guide is pivotally mounted and after being so mounted the lead element 13 is threaded between the tongues and through the slot 20 in the head 19. Thus, the guide is held at all times tangential to the roll formed by the two elements 13 and 14 which are wound upon the reel 9.

The tapes 13 and 14 are preferably made of flexible steel and of such a stiffness that when the lead tape is projected into and pulled through a conduit, the said lead tape will not buckle.

In using the device, supposing the twoelements 13 and 14 to be wound upon the reel 9 and it is desired to feed the lead element 13 into a conduit, the crank handle 10 is applied to the shaft 16 and the shaft is rotated in the direction indicated by the ar row in Fig. l of the drawings. This rotation of the shaft and the reel thereon serves to wind the feed element 14 upon the reel and as this element unwinds from the reel 9, it feeds the lead element 13 into and through the guide above described. Inasmuch as this guide is at all times tangential to the roll of the two elements upon the reel 9, the lead element will be. fed through the guide and from the same in a line tangential to the said roll. Due to this fact, there will be no tendency for the lead element to buckle or to become otherwise distorted and manual feeding of this lead element through the conduit is obviated. After the lead element has been fed through the conduit, the conductor to be laid in the conduit is attached to its free end and the crank handle 10 is then applied to the shaft 8. Rotation of this shaft in the same direction as that in which the shaft 16 as above described as being rotated, will result in the feed element being unwound from the reel 17 and onto the reel 9 and will also result in the lead element 13 being drawn through the guide and wound upon the said reel 9. It will at this point be readily understood that the inner end of the guide or more specifically the inner end of the lower tongue of the guide, rests against the periphery of the roll of the two elements upon the reel 9 and moves inwardly toward the reel as these elements are unwound therefrom. When the elements have been nearly completely unwound from the reel, the notch 11 will be exposed and the said free end of the lower tongue of the guide will seat against the abrupt shoulder 12 of this notch and further rotation of the reel in a direction to unwind the elements will be prevented. Thus, unwinding of the elements to such degree as to render liable their disconnection from the reel is prevented.

What is claimed is:

1. In a device of the class described, two reels, a flexible lead tape, and a flexible feed tape, each tape having one terminal secured to one reel, the other terminal of the feed tape being secured to the other reel, the body portions of both tapes being of such a length as to normally be wound in overlapping relation with the convolutions of the lead tape between the convolutions of the feed tape and upon the reel to which both tapes are secured, while the other terminal of the lead tape is free.

2. In a device of the class described, two reels, a flexible lead tape, and a flexible feed tape, each tape having one terminal secured to one reel, the other terminal of the feed tape being secured to the other reel, the body portions of both tapes being of such a length as to normally be wound in overlapping relation with the convolutions of the lead tape between the convolutions of the feed tape and upon the reel to which both tapes are secured, while the terminal of the lead tape is free, and a guide for the free terminal of the lead tape.

3. In a device of the class described, two reels, a flexible lead tape, and a flexible feed tape, each tape having one terminal secured to one reel, the other terminal of the feed tape being secured to the other reel, the body portions of both tapes being of such a length as to normally be wound in overlapping relation with the convolutions of the lead tape between the convolutions of the feed tape and upon the reel to which both tapes are wound, while the other terminal of the lead tape is free, and a guide for the free terminal of the lead tape pivoted. to have its free end projected toward the reels.

4. In a device of the class described, two superposed reels, a flexible lead tape, and

a flexible feed tape, one terminal of each tape being secured to the lower reel and the other terminal of the feed tape being secured to the upper reel, the body portions of the tapes being of such a length as to normally be wound in overlapping relation with the convolutions of the lead tape between the convolutions of the feed tape upon the lower reel, and the other terminal of the lead tape being free.

5. In a device of the class described, two

superposed reels, a flexible lead tape, and a flexible feed tape, one terminal of each tape being secured to the lower reel and the other terminal of the feed tape being secured to the upper reel, the body portions of the tapes being of such a length as to normally be wound in overlapping relation with the convolutions of the lead tape between the convolutions of the feed tape upon the lower reel, the other terminal of the lead tape being free, and a guide for the free terminal of the lead tape.

6. In a device of the class described, two superposed reels, a flexible lead tape, and a flexible feed tape, one terminal of each tape being secured to the lower reel and the other terminal of the feed tape being secured to the upper reel, the body portions of the tapes being of such a length as to normally be wound in overlapping relation with the convolutions of the lead tape between the convolutions of the feed tape upon the lower reel, the other terminal of the lead tape being free, and a guide for the free terminal of the lead tape pivoted to have its free end projected toward the reels.

7. In a device of the class described, two superposed reels, a flexible lead tape, and a flexible feed tape, one terminal of each tape being secured to the lower reel and the other terminal of the feed tape being secured to the upper reel, the body portions of the tapes being of such a length as to normally be wound in overlapping relation with the oonvolutions of the lead tape between the convolutions of the feed tape upon the lower reel, the other terminal of the lead tape being free, and means for stopping the rotation of the lower reel.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have heretofore aflixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

ISAIAH BOWDLE.

WVitnesses GRACE A. CRAWFORD, EDWIN F. HAHN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G. 

